1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus, an image transmission method, an image transmission program, and a computer-readable recording medium on which the image transmission program is recorded, and more particularly, to an image reading apparatus, image transmission method and image transmission program that include a function to send multiple sets of image data obtained through the reading of a multi-page original document, as well as to a computer-readable recording medium on which the image transmission program is recorded. The present invention also relates to an image management apparatus, an image management method, an image management program and a computer-readable recording medium on which the image management program is recorded, as well as an image management apparatus, image management method, and image management program that include a function to receive multiple sets of image data sent from an image reading apparatus, as well to as a computer-readable recording medium on which the image management program is recorded.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the conventional art, an image reading apparatus such as an image scanner reads an original document placed on the image reading unit thereof, converts the original document image into image data as digital data, and transmits such data to an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer that is connected to the image reading apparatus directly or over a network. Upon receiving the image data, the information processing apparatus can display it on the display or carry out certain image processing to the received image data. The image data is recorded in a magnetic recording device or other means included in the information processing apparatus.
However, using a conventional image reading apparatus, when the original document is read while being placed on the platen one page at a time by the user, the image data obtained through reading is generated as one image data file for each page of the original document, and when this data file is sent to the information processing apparatus, the information processing apparatus records the image data file each time one is received. Therefore, where original documents that includes multiple document sets each including multiple pages is read by the image reading apparatus one page at a time and the image thereof is sent to the information processing apparatus, the information processing apparatus that receives the image data files cannot determine whether the multiple image data files, each of which includes an image file for one page of the original document, should be managed as one group or as multiple different groups. Accordingly, the user of the information processing apparatus must either change a part of the file name for each of the multiple image data files received such that the same name is included in files belonging to the same document set, or save the received multiple image data files in different folders depending on the document set to which the file belongs. As a result, the user of the information processing apparatus is required to perform some operation.
In an image reading apparatus that includes an automatic document feeder (ADF) that conveys each page of a multi-page original document to the image reading unit, because the multiple pages of the original document set in the ADF are read continuously, the multiple sets of image data obtained through the reading of the multi-page original document are placed into a single image data file, such as a multi-page TIFF file, for example, and sent to the information processing apparatus. Therefore, the information processing apparatus handles all of the original document images as one image data file. Consequently, even if it is desired to manage the multi-page original document as multiple different document sets, if the original document is placed in the ADF all at once, all of the original document image data is deemed to belong to a single file. Accordingly, where an original document that includes multiple document sets was to be read and the image data thereof is sent to the same information processing apparatus, in the conventional art the original document must be divided into each document set, which was then read, and the image data for each document set had to be transmitted as one image data file each time such reading was performed. However, as a result, it was difficult for the information processing apparatus to recognize the relationships among the received multiple files, as described above.